What Is Saved

What Is Saved

The wise store up choice food and olive oil, but fools gulp theirs down.

Proverbs 21:20 (NIV)

Although Benjamin Franklin’s familiar adage “A penny saved, is a penny earned” has changed from his original, the concept is one the Amish believe in, as the first Amish Cook, Elizabeth Coblentz, writes:

Thinking back then, the land wasn’t selling high as it is now, and the wages were low or so it seems now. I guess it’s not what you earn, it’s what you save. Also, it was hard to find a job when we were first married, thirty-six years ago. Being without a job was tough, especially when those farm payments came along. But somehow, there was always a way, it seemed.

No killing frost as yet. We dug out the flower bulbs that don’t survive the cold winter months. Also, the sweet potatoes were dug out and the garden goodies have been taken care of except the lettuce and endive and a few other vegetables remain in the garden. We didn’t buy any lettuce from the stores since last spring and it’s less than two months from Christmas. Do we appreciate it enough?

What we save—money, flower bulbs, or “garden goodies”—is precious to us. Personally, I have saved boxes of wonderful treasures: baby photos, trinkets from vacations, and my grandmother’s recipes.

In our culture today we often have a consumeristic mentality, but God reminds us there is a good purpose to our saving some things: so that we will have a bounty to share with others. The apostle Paul often took collections for himself and his fellow laborers. His work depended on others saving and sharing: “On the first day of each week, you should each put aside a portion of the money you have earned. Don’t wait until I get there and then try to collect it all at once” (1 Corinthians 16:2).

What do you have to save? What do you have to share? Tulip bulbs grow and share beauty. A garden harvest feeds a family. Money can help the destitute. Photos share memories. And if you find it hard to share, remember how much Christ shared . . . and how you are saved because of it.

Dear heavenly Father, I would be lost now if You didn’t focus on a saving work. Thank You.